Subscribe
Follow Us
LOS ANGELES – To say the Los Angeles Lakers have been hit with injuries to their frontcourt this season would be a major understatement. To this point, Anthony Davis has been the only available center on the standard roster. The Lakers have used two-way contract player Christian Koloko at times, but head coach JJ Redick has opted to go with more small-ball lineups in recent games with Rui Hachimura at center.
The injuries to Jarred Vanderbilt, Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes have left the team's frontcourt rotation incredibly thin, and the Lakers have been reportedly scouring the trade market for potential upgrades at center. There is good news on the horizon though with the anticipated return of Hayes this week.
But in the meantime, it's been Rui Hachimura who has been adjusting to the Lakers' small-ball center lineups. Hachimura has been a forward his entire career alternating between both the three and the four. But he's risen to the challenge of playing center recently, and after the Lakers' win against the Sacramento Kings on Saturday, he spoke about the key advantages the team needs to exploit when they run small-ball.
“It's small-ball, but you just still got to be more physical than the other team. We got to play faster and then we got to shoot more threes. That was the key that we talked about, especially the threes part because that's now going to open up the floor,” Hachimura said. “We can shoot more threes. And it's not just me, it's everybody. I'm faster than most of the five men in this league, so I got to use my strengths and that's the kind of stuff we've focused on.”
Overall, Hachimura has been solid this season. He plays his role and has been a key player in the team's rotation.
Rui Hachimura's importance for Lakers
Since being acquired by the Lakers in a trade with the Washington Wizards before the 2023 deadline, Hachimura has been a steady player. Some nights, he might be the third or even second-leading scorer.
In recent games, it's been Hachimura's shot that's stood out. He's shooting a career-high 45.2 percent from three-point range, and in the last two games he's gone a combined 9-of-12 (75 percent) from distance. He understands that with LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the roster, he's going to get his share of good looks from three-point range and he's going to need to knock them down.
“I've been working on this shot for years, and especially since I got here with the Lakers, that has been my number one goal,” Hachimura said. “And especially playing with Bron and AD, they attract a lot of the defense, so there's gonna be shots for me. This is exactly what I wanted, and it's starting to come together, so I got to keep shooting.”
Overall, Hachimura has appeared in 26 games this season at a little over 33 minutes per game which is a career-high. He's been averaging 12.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists with splits of 48.4 percent shooting from the field, 45.2 percent shooting from the three-point line and 83.3 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Hachimura has one more season left on his contract after this one from the three-year, $51 million deal he signed in the 2023 offseason.
